Teaching Sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

20 minutes – Part A: Risk, Hazard And Disaster
30 minutes – Part B: Investigating Natural Hazards
15 minutes – Part C: Infographic Activity
5 minutes – Reflection

Part A: Risk, Hazard And Disaster

Step 1.

Ask the class if they can explain the difference between a hazard and a risk. Instruct students to form pairs and find definitions for both terms online, then write down three examples of hazards and associated risks. This could include hazards located in the room or school, or ones in their community. Ask students to volunteer their definitions.

You can compare theirs to these definitions:

A hazard is an event or a process (either natural or human-made) that can cause harm to people, their belongings and their environment, if they do not take precautions.
A risk is the likelihood of the hazard causing harm and turning into a disaster.

Step 2.

Show students the diagram below outlining the aspects of risk and explain how vulnerability and exposure increase risk:

risk, vulnerability hazard exposure diagram

Vulnerability: How likely a person, community, city or country is to experience the harmful effects of a hazard. Poor people and communities are more likely to be the most vulnerable as they have fewer choices about where to live, are less likely to have strong building design and less likely to have the education or understanding about preparing for a hazard.
Exposure: The number of people and their belongings who face risks in a hazard zone. Climate change and denser populations increase exposure.

Step 3.

Ask students for the examples of hazards that they wrote down. Discuss the likelihood of the hazard causing harm to themselves, considering their exposure and vulnerability.
For example, a student may have chosen sharks as a hazard. Their exposure depends on how often they swim in the ocean and their vulnerability could be how strong a swimmer they are or if they are swimming in a patrolled area.

Step 4.

Ask students to categorise their hazards as natural or human-made. Are any examples difficult to categorise?
For example, a fire is a natural hazard but when caused by humans you could say it is human-made.

Step 5.

Display this list of hazards on the board and, working as a class, categorise each as natural or human-made:

Bushfire
Urban fire
Cyclone
Transport
Earthquake
Flood
Health (e.g. food poisoning outbreaks)
Tsunami

Landslide
Storms
Industrial (e.g. construction collapse)
Drought
Heatwaves
Biosecurity (e.g. exotic pests and diseases)
Criminal (e.g. terrorism, shootings, sieges)
Maritime/coastal (e.g. ship sinking)

Step 6.

Show students a map of the local area and its natural environment (Google Maps shows vegetation and waterways, and Google Earth will give more topographic details). Discuss natural environment features that contribute to or create a hazard in the area.
For example, waterways/coastline/valleys create a flooding hazard, mountains can create a landslide hazard, forests create a bushfire hazard, concrete causes a heat island effect which can exacerbate heatwaves.

Note: You might also like to look at this AIDR map which shows historical disasters that have occured in Australia.

Step 7.

Instruct students to work in their pairs again and list hazards that exist in their local area. Categorise each as natural or human-made, or scenarios where it can be both.

Step 8.

Explain to the class that each pair will now walk around the class and consult their classmates to see if there are any hazards they have missed. Instruct students to add these to their list.

Extension opportunity: Label each natural hazard as atmospheric, hydrological or geomorphological.

Step 9.

Ask the class what they think makes a natural hazard become a disaster. Compare their answers to the following:

A disaster is when a hazard causes extensive damage to people, places and environments. This could include: People build homes near a hazard, the hazard occurs, the hazard causes damage to people and their belongings.

Step 10.

Ask the class for examples of disasters that have occurred in Australia. Can they think of any reasons the hazard became a disaster?

Learning support: Optional vocabulary video to assist understanding: Natural Hazards - Geo Glossary (https://youtu.be/JBF5TNI-Gto)

Part B: Investigating Natural Hazards

Step 1.

Instruct students to form groups of three and explain that each group will investigate one natural hazard that exists in their local area from Part A.

Some useful resources include:

Note: Use your discretion and pick the hazards if there are many hazards identified or choose ones that relate to the subject area the class is studying, e.g. natural hazards, instead of the human-made ones, for earth sciences or geography.

Step 2.

Explain that each group must research:

What environmental factors cause this natural hazard to occur?
Who would be most at risk of harm from this natural hazard? (Remember that risk includes vulnerability and exposure.)
Provide a diagram that explains these processes or factors.
Where else might this natural hazard occur (locally, nationally and globally)?
What effects could the hazard have on the natural and human environments in your local area if it became a disaster? Make sure to explain the difference between a natural hazard and a disaster.

Part C: Infographic Activity

Step 1.

Explain to the students that each group will use their research to create an infographic that could be displayed in their community to educate people about natural hazards in the area.

The infographics should aim to:

Grab the attention of the viewer with a compelling title or image (must be related to the topic)
Have a clear and constructive message about natural hazards in the area (don’t just scare the viewer, give them some solutions too)
Be accessible to a range of community members (e.g. non-English speakers, various disabilities, colour-blindness)
Use a consistent colour scheme
Use consistent, easy to read fonts.

Examples of infographics can be found on this WHO webpage and on this UN page. Canva is a good resource for formatting infographics and PowerPoint can also be used. Here is one:

Step 2.

Instruct students to ask another group for feedback on their finished infographic.

Reflection

Invite students to work independently to answer the following questions (also available on the Student Worksheet):

How has this lesson changed your perception of natural hazards in your local area?
What information can you share with your family from what you have learnt in this lesson?

Differentiated Learning

Extension -

In Part A, students can label each natural hazard as atmospheric, hydrological or geomorphological.
In Part B, students can research the potential economic impact of a natural hazard in their local area.

Provisions for Learning Support - Provide written definitions to students to consult as they complete the activities; students can answer the Part B questions in dot points instead of full sentences.

Teacher Reflection

Take this opportunity to reflect on your own teaching:

What did you learn about your teaching practice today?
What worked well?
What didn't work so well?
What would you share?
Where to next?
How are you going to get there?

Disaster Resilience - Introduction To Natural Hazards

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